Sacha Lord, founder of Parklife festival and The Warehouse Project, has recently announced an offer that might prick your ears up, as it could lead to you getting a free pint or two from your local pub. The former Night Time Economy Advisor for Greater Manchester took to social media, stating that he would be putting £2,500 behind the bar of one pub in the city region.
In previous years, Sacha Lord has run similar offers, paying for people’s meals and beverages at a chippy in Blackley and at The Thirsty Korean restaurant in Chorlton, with hundreds claiming the free food and drink. This time, the Night Time Industries Association chair is calling on people to nominate a pub in Greater Manchester where he will foot some of the bill on Sunday, 3rd May at 4pm.
“My biggest concern out of everything is the loss of our pubs, our community pubs.”
In a video, Sacha Lord said: “So you’ve probably heard me continuously talking about how bad things are right now in hospitality. Things are really, really severe, perhaps worse than they were during COVID, when there was some support. And it’s not just in Greater Manchester, it’s across the whole of the UK.
“My biggest concern out of everything is the loss of our pubs, our community pubs. Those pubs that serve me more than just a pint, you know, they serve the community.
“This is where the elderly meet their friends. It’s where relationships are made. We talk to each other. We talk about gossip. We talk about worries. We share things together.”
In the video, Lord also mentioned the number of pubs closing, which analysis of government statistics by tax company Ryan found that 366 pubs were demolished or converted for other uses in 2025. The number of pubs fell from 38,989 to 38,623, with over 2,000 disappearing over the past five years.
And there’s no catch. The industry campaigner said all he wanted to do was “spread a little bit of cheer.”
In January 2026, the government announced a support package for pubs, which would see a 15% cut to new business rates bills from April. This would then be followed by a two-year real-terms freeze, as well as a review into the method used to value them for business rates.
Which Greater Manchester pub will Sacha Lord be putting £2,500 behind the bar?
Sacha Lord is yet to confirm which Greater Manchester pub will have £2,500 behind the bar on the bank holiday Sunday (May 3). He said: “I’m going to turn up at a pub in Greater Manchester and put 2,500 pounds behind the bar, so it’ll be free drinks on me until the 2,500 is gone.”
Lord called on his followers to tag their favourite pub in the comments of his video, and said he will be monitoring it constantly up until probably two or three days before the event and will then announce the pub. He added, “Please tag away, show some support for community pubs, and I’ll see you on the 3rd of May.”